Will's Story: The Moment of Truth
by xWinterRose
Summary: William, portrayed by Joe Dempsie in Merlin, has his own unique storyline in Episode 10 of Season 1. This is my own take on the action that happens in this episode. Reviews and cons crit appreciated! Enjoy.


"EALDOR! EALDOR! EALDOR!"

Upon the chanting of power led by the once and future King, Arthur, William rolled his eyes and slunk away into the shadows. There was no hope in the act of fighting against the people who command the little village of Ealdor. They had weapons and strong men, whereas the village was burdened with weak, flawed civilians who had already lost the last of the provisions they had been preparing all year round. William was tired. He was tired of the loss both hope and family – his father dying many years before fighting for King Cenred. He mourned deeply, day after day, for the man who had raised him from just a boy into the man he had been before grief had changed him into the insecure, helpless child he was today.

As the door closed behind him, William breathed in deeply, allowing the morning sunshine to drench over his skin. His fingers trebled as he knelt down to lace up his thin leather boots, a cough catching in his throat. He stood slowly, looking over the pastures that lay in every direction, his favourite of which met the river. As William looked upon the serenity of the green, two hands jumped up at him, one clamping over his eyes, the other over his mouth. Eyes widening in shock behind the hand, he squirmed, trying to wriggle free. "Hey!" he exclaimed, as the hand covering his mouth moved to reinforce the other over his eyes.

A giggle escaped William's captor, stilling him. "Erica? Is that you?" William gently removed the girl's hands from his eyes, smiling a crooked smile.

"You guessed that fast?" Erica, a young girl of nineteen pouted as she crossed her arms.

"You're not very good at keeping quiet," William replied, the frown left in his eyes vanishing as a warm smile appeared on Erica's face.

In mock-arrogance, Erica flipped her hair behind her shoulders. "I learnt from the best!" she teased, stroking William's arm softly. William looked at her. To him, she was beautiful, although others would see her average. Her hazel eyes blinked steadily under her dark eyelashes, and her medium length brown hair swept to her breasts, small and dainty. She was thin, the lack of food taking its toll on her figure – the lack of food also making her face look gaunt. To William, she was perfect… and she was his.

"Shush," he whispered, pulling her to him by wrapping his arms around her waist. "They're planning a revolt." His grin vanished as the thought took hold of his conscience.

"I've heard," Erica murmured, her tone echoing his. "William… There's nothing you can do. It's what the people want. It's what… It's what we need."

"We…?" William snatched his hands back, anger flashing through his expression. "You mean to tell me you believe this, this concept, too? I thought you were with me." He couldn't believe what he was hearing. His most trusted friend, alongside Merlin, had taken the side of a Prince who didn't know what he was doing, who would go on to cause harm to the natives of Ealdor with little musings other than that of "honour" and "pride".

"William, Will - I didn't…" Erica's voice trailed off as she fought for words. She clawed at William's chest, pulling on his tunic. She gave up, desperation failing her. "I love you," she breathed, blinking away tears. "Let us fight together, William. For the sake of the village, if nothing else."

"It would be pointless," William said, turning away from her to look over the pastures once more. A sudden thought captured him; William audibly gasped. "Erica… come away with me!" He once more gathered her at the waist, but this time turned her to face out over the green with him. "We'll leave, right this second. You and I, we'll head out past the river."

"William-" Erica began, looking down. In seconds, William had moved behind her, guiding her head up toward the great winding river. His hands stroked down her arms as he allowed his head to rest in the curve where Erica's shoulder and neck joined.

"Think about the future. We could go on to the next village - Tír-Mòr – live our lives there together. We could run a home together, raise little Caitlin and Caoimhe," at this, Erica bristled in pleasure. William was using the names she had picked out for her ideal children, a conversation that had once been held in a time where the village was prospering, only a few months before. It was a summer's day in June, the wind cooling against the bright of the sun. The two had run away from a hard morning of agriculture after only a few hours of toil, grabbing a loaf of bread and a pale of water on their way. They had sat by the river William so loved, Erica's head resting in his lap. He had been stroking her hair slowly, carefully. Lovingly.

"We could run a little farm," Erica purred, her eyes glazing over. "Have pigs, and cows…"

"Yes, that's right," William encouraged, his face bright. "And rabbits…"

"Yes," the girl smiled.

"Let us go, Erica," coaxed William, pulling her around to face him, clutching her hands.

"Now?" she asked. Erica's expression was that of confusion, the ghost of the happiness she once had draining from her face.

William frowned, puzzled. "Why not?" he enquired. "You want to be safe with me, don't you?"

"Of course… it's just…"

"Just what?"

"I haven't said goodbye to anyone," Erica said, looking hard at William.

"If Arthur's right, we'll see them again," William replied, wiping his hands down the front of his trousers. He crossed his arms, using his brow to gesture across the village. "Do you trust me?" he asked, stepping forward.

"Of course."

"We'll leave now. We haven't much time," he stopped, catching the look of annoyance on Erica's face. "Please, Erica. Please…"

"Okay."

William took Erica by the hand, beginning to lead her quickly away from the village and towards the river. While William was moving forward solidly, Erica kept turning back towards the village, a look of longing in her eyes.

* * *

"I forgot how beautiful it looked close up," Erica breathed as they reached the edge of the river. Her hand was still clasped in William's, although both hands were slightly sweatier now. "How long do you think is left to go?" she asked, her free arm raised up as a shield and her eyes blinking away the sun. The river was surrounded on either side by huge trees. Through them, one could see the sun at sunset if they squinted, looking upwards.

"A good two hours on foot," William responded, he too looking over the vista. "We'll rest here tonight and continue in the morning." He led her to the foot of a tree, where the two of them sat up against it waiting for sleep.

"Will, _Prince of Ealdor_," Erica murmured as she snuggled up to William.

"Hm. Catchy, isn't it?" Will grinned, his arms wrapping around his sleeping princess, keeping her warm in the rapidly gaining cold."I wonder if anyone's noticed we're gone, yet," he pondered, his eyes transfixed on the undulating water.

"Let us hope they haven't," Erica sighed as the last of the sun's rays disappeared over the horizon. "We don't want a search party after us." Her voice was soft, careful. She was holding this moment close to her heart, willing for the memory to stay far into the future. A night like this, the beginning of a revolution, would be heart-breaking to forget. She wanted to stay in this instant, bound to William.

When the two opened their eyes many hours later, they returned to the riverbank. "We need to cross the water to get there," William said, breaking the silence.

"Straight through it?" Erica asked.

"It's the only way," William grinned, tightening his grip on her hand. He pulled her through the water, his smile broadening as he got closer and closer to his destination, to _their _destination, where he and the girl he loved would live out their life in peace.

"Will-"

The pair stopped dead, the water continuing to ripple out around them.

"Shush," William beckoned, taking an excruciatingly small step forward. In the distance, the galloping of horses could be heard coming toward them. The ground rumbled like thunder, as William whispered frantically to Erica. "They weren't meant to come yet – they're early. I- Erica, hide. Go to the trees on the other side, quickly! Climb if you can, just go!" William pushed her forwards, his hand caressing her face for a few seconds. Helping her up the river bank, he stepped after her, leaning in to kiss her urgently. "Go," he whispered.

"I love you," Erica stuttered, tears forming in her eyes as she leant over the river.

"Go," William said, more harshly. "I love you," he repeated her words as a sudden silence fell. Erica scurried towards the trees, the only audible evidence of her movement in her ragged breaths.

"Your time has come, men," a voice yelled across the land. William instantly recognised it as Kanen – the man who had been controlling the village and taking all of the civilians' supplies. "It's time to go in there and rip every man apart who keeps their food from you! We will take their women as our own, and their food to feed our children!" A roar of appreciated resounded from the cavalry. Kanen's horse moved closer to the river. William waited. He had to choose the right moment to move from his position by the river bank to under the water. If he took the wrong moment or moved to a place elsewhere, his cover would be blown and all hope of his fantasy – living life with Erica – would be gone forever. "Ready men?" called Kanen.

William inhaled a breath of air, glancing anxiously in the direction of Erica. She was hidden in a tree, directly above Kanen's horse. The boy prayed quietly, before slipping under the water.

Above the ground, Erica clung onto the branches listening to the words of Kanen. At this moment, a large crow perched next to her. It cawed loudly, its screaming knocking Erica off balance. She grabbed at the branches as she fell down. Kanen's horse reared up, its dark hooves coming crashing down on the legs of the young girl. As she screamed in pain and Kanen reassured his horse, William placed his hands over his mouth, panic reaching his eyes. All he could hear was muffled noises, broken by high pitched screams.

"What do we have here, then?" Kanen jumped from his horse, peering over Erica, who was writhing in pain on the floor. "A spy? Have you come to spy on us for Pendragon?"

"No, no-" she began, tears filling her eyes from the agony shooting through her.

"We know what we have to do with spies, don't we men?" Another roar of appreciation rocked through the crowd. Kanen smirked, his eyes lighting up as he unsheathed his sword. He pointed the blade upwards, letting the sun's rays catch the sparkling metal. His beard trembled under the strength of moving his sword down and stabbing at Erica, whose screaming stopped suddenly. "Ack, unlucky," Kanen grinned. "It would have been nice to see her lust after life a little longer."

William, still under the water, had no time for tears. His anger took hold as he forced himself to stay under the water longer, knowing there was little point in avenging Kanen for her death alone – not when he had his army with him. He had to swallow his pride and go back to Merlin and Arthur. Kanen had to die.

* * *

The storm of battle hit hard upon the village of Ealdor. Men and women were fighting with Kanen's men; they were coming down twice as fast. The sun juxtaposed the tone of battle, warm and bright against the sombre atmosphere of death and grief. Arthur was fighting with his newly trained men and women on one side of the field, sending the cavalry's horses fleeing in all directions – trampling fallen men on their way. William had snuck out of the river after the men. As the cavalry had crossed the body of water, so had he. He had kept tightly to the line of trees connecting the river to Ealdor, as Kanen had addressed his men for the final time. William shook his head as he ran into the abandoned blacksmiths' and took the first sword he laid eyes on. He seized armour and a shield as he took his last look around the familiar shop – a place he had spent a lot of his childhood with Merlin, helping to shoe horses and create bowls and pans for the villagers. This was it.

William jumped over a wall, knocking a rider from a horse as he rode to attack William's oldest friend, Merlin. Merlin turned to see William on the floor, bludgeoning the soldier unresistingly. William pulled his sword from his sheath and spun to face Merlin, the momentum from the kill keeping him moving.

"I didn't think you were coming," Merlin grinned. He was proud that William had joined him and not abandoned the fight, like William had let him believe.

William paused, his eyes meeting Merlin's. The anger William felt melted away for a second, allowing him to grin cheekily at Merlin. "Neither did I," he said, raising his sword. As he stepped back to back with Merlin, the time seemed to slow. They were fighting with everyone else, yet their little corner of battle felt so secluded. It wasn't as if the gap left in him from the loss of Erica – another loss – had disappeared, but for then, William could have sworn it was covered. He was fighting with his friend, and that was all that mattered. Nothing else.

With space being cleared around them and the bodies piling up, they watched as Kanen took down another man. "There's too many of them," said Will, shaking his head desperately.

"Not for me there isn't," Merlin replied heatedly, staring out at the violence occurring in his hometown. William watched as he slowly raised a hand and begun speaking in an ancient tongue. Even in the heat of battle William stood wide-eyed, bewilderment in his expression. For all the time he had known Merlin, he would never tire of seeing such a feat pulled out of a body more feeble looking than his own, a manic determination stressed through every feature of his friend's being. Within instants of Merlin chanting the words, a strong wind whipped around them. William sheathed his sword, observing as Merlin's conjuration knocked grown men to the floor and horses to their knees. If it were possible, the battlefield became even more erratic, people being forced in many different directions.

A short cheering was induced, followed swiftly by the crying of "Pendragon!" from the man who had started it all. As Kanen and Arthur fought, William and Merlin stood side by side, allowing the action to play out. In half a minute, the fight was over. Arthur struck Kanen with his sword, grimacing as the disgusting man collapsed onto the floor.

Although the fight had been won, Arthur had no time for pride. He turned to Merlin and sequentially to William, demanding answers. "Who did that?" he queried irately.

Merlin decided to feign innocence, replying; "what?"

"Wind like that doesn't just appear from nowhere. I know magic when I see it. One of you made it happen," the king-to-be countered, his face darkening in a way similar to a hard storm. He breathed deeply, the fight of the battle catching up to him.

Hesitantly, Merlin looked to the ground. "Arthur…" he began, slowly meeting his master's eyes. Behind him, Kanen was beginning to surface. He clutched at a crossbow, raising it at Arthur with the final strands of strength he could muster. A thousand thoughts roamed through William's head. _He didn't have anything to lose. Erica was gone. He could cover for Merlin. He would be the hero he had always wished to be._

"Look out!" even before he had finished, William had stepped in the way of the crossbow, stopping Arthur's near-death in its tracks. Everything started to go dark. Merlin cried out, rushing towards his friend and catching him in his arms. Arthur too began to move towards William, panic spreading between the two men.

"You saved my life," Arthur said, disbelief thick in his voice.

Through his pain, William replied, his teeth gritted. "Yeah, don't know what I was thinking." His words slurred together, unable to take the force of the crossbow piercing his skin.

Arthur didn't hesitate, calling out to his men. "Come on, get him inside!" The future king helped his saviour into the first cottage they came across, laying him out upon a stone table.

"That's twice I saved you," William gasped, his face red from the pressure.

"Twice?" Arthur enquired.

William nodded, collecting enough power to speak what he knew would be his final words. "Yeah, it was me. _I'm_ the one that used the magic."

Merlin blinked, releasing what his friend was about to do for him. "Will don't –"

William cut him off. "It's alright. I mean I won't be alive long enough for anyone to do anything to me. I did it. I saw how… desperate things were becoming and I had to do something," he choked.

"You're a sorcerer?" Shocked, Arthur turned to Merlin with a look of disappointment.

William laughed uneasily. "Yeah. What're you going to do? Kill me?"

"No. Of course not," Arthur replied, reinforcing his statement with a resigned "no." His father wouldn't have approved of letting the boy live, if only for a few moments longer. The once and future King looked once more to Merlin, hearing William frantically choking down air. "Do what you can for him," he said quietly, leaving the room. Hunith ushered Gwen, Morgana and the villagers out too, their heads full of pride for their villager who had saved Arthur.

"I was right about him. I told you he was going to get me killed."

"You're not going to die," Merlin said, shaking his head stubbornly.

William rebuked his words, coughing out his own. "You're a good man, Merlin – A great man. And one day you're going to be servant to a great King. Now you can still make that happen."

"Thanks to you," Merlin replied softly.

William sniffed, looking deep into his friend's eyes. "This place has been boring without you. It's good to see you again."

"Yeah you too."

Despite trying hard, William could no longer keep up the façade that he was fine, wincing. "Merlin," he called, fear etched into every line on his face. "Merlin I'm scared."

Merlin attempted positivity, smiling reassuringly. "Don't be, Will, it's going to be alright!"

"Merlin… I…" Tears dripped down Merlin's face as he watched his friend endeavour to speak for the final time, but no sound came out. William's body writhed with the last pangs of pain, before relaxing into an eternal slumber.


End file.
